At a time when it is facing a revenue deficit of around Rs 400 crore, the Rajiv Jadhav-led PCMC seems to be adamant in spending over Rs 5 crore for construction of a foot overbridge (FOB). The plan has drawn flak from several quarters. The FOB is slated to come up in Sheetalbaug area of Bhosari and across the Pune-Nashik Highway. Sheetalbaug area falls in Gavahane vasti civic ward of MLA Mahesh Landge. Although Landge has been elected as MLA, he has not resigned as corporator. In fact, he is the chairman of the PCMC standing committee, which recently approved the Rs 5.57-crore FOB in his ward. When it was first planned and tenders issued in 2012, the project cost was estimated at Rs 74 lakh. However, last week the 2012 tender was cancelled and a new tender estimating the cost of the project at Rs 5.57 crore — a rise by nearly 400 per cent — was given the green signal. The tenders for the project were issued in August last year. “The project design has undergone a change. Earlier, the FOB was much smaller and now we are planning a bigger one,” said PCMC chief Rajiv Jadhav. He added, “I have asked officials to find out if there was indeed a need for such an FOB and whether it was possible to scale down the cost. If we find that the cost was on the higher side, we will bring it down,” he said. PCMC city engineer Kamble justified the project cost. “The earlier FOB was like the steel one at Kasarwadi and now it will be in concrete , like the FOB outside Vallabhnagar State Transport depot,” he said. The PCMC administration denied that there was any pressure from Landge to set up a ‘grand FOB’ in honour of his recent victory in the state assembly elections. “There was no pressure from Landge. the administration has put the project proposal before the standing committee,” said Kamble. However, a civic official said, “The PCMC administration has bowed before Landge’s wish.”Maruti Bhapkar of AAP called the move ‘a waste of public funds to appease an MLA.’ The PCMC should not go ahead with the project,” said Shridhar Chalkha of Common People’s Front. Despite repeated attempts to contact him, Landge refused to respond. Landge was elected as an Independent but has extended support to the BJP government in the state.
